Sh*t That Comes Out Today: May 21, 2021

This week we have blackgaze, psychgaze, dronegaze, thrashgaze, sludge/grindgaze, and krautgaze for your gazing enjoyment.

An Autumn for Crippled Children
As The Morning Dawns We Close Our Eyes (Prosthetic)

Didn’t I just write about a new album from these guys? A little over a year after the apparently prolific “blackgaze” outfit’s last full-length, All fell silent, everything went quiet we get another eight doses of melancholic black metal-inspired shoegaze from the Netherlands. This one feels like both a continuation and a step up — while more song-based and less atmospheric than their earlier work, said songs feel tighter and aimed directly at the listener’s heart. Their focus lies in delivering their emotional message whether or not you can actually understand the shrieks, and they succeed here.

Monster Magnet
A Better Dystopia (Napalm)

When Pentagram and Hawkwind are the most high-profile acts on a covers album (yeah, I know they’re big names in metal circles but ask your parents if they’ve heard of them), you know you’re in for some serious crate-digging. One would expect no less from Dave Wyndorf, of course — Monster Magnet’s mastermind makes no secret of his affinity for the weirder side of the vinyl. Even when interpreting others’ work, Wyndorf and his co-conspirators make it their own, opening their third eyes and finding the warning orbs within. I’ll admit I’m biased (Monster Magnet are one of my all-time faves) but this tribute to their personal gods is a ritual worth attending.

Nadja
Luminous Rot (Southern Lord)

Nadja have specialized in shoegaze-inspired downer drone since 2003 for a pretty obscene number of releases. Quiet despair breaks through curtains of fuzz on Luminous Rot, their latest. Sometimes it’s low-key, sometimes they bring the full weight of their amplifiers to bear. Not a heck of a lot different from previous forays into feedback frying, but still strangely satisfying nonetheless.

Vulture
Dealin’ Death (Metal Blade)

Vulture are so metal that every one of their album covers so far have featured a metal blade — which is also the label they’re on — so don’t question their commitment to the speed metallic arts. It’s debatable whether they have more patches on their battle jackets or killer speed metal riffs. Either way, the listener wins! These kick-ass tunes could fit just as easily on a mid-80s Metal Massacre compilation as they could on the current installment curated by Decibel editor-in-chief Albert Mudrian (also out today!).

Yautja
The Lurch (Relapse)

You wouldn’t expect a band named after the alien species better known as the Predators to be pretty, would you? Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Dutch calls the monster one ugly motherfucker, a term that certainly applies to Yautja’s Relapse debut, The Lurch. I dunno who from the band decided to combine sludge and grindcore, two of the least pleasant genres in existence, but they did and here we are. This beast will wreck your ears, your speakers, and your day — not necessarily in that order.

Yoo Doo Right
Don’t Think You Can Escape Your Purpose (Mothland)

Get past the not-great name taken from a great Can song and yoo’ll find that Yoo Doo Right doo pretty much everything else correctly. Said name should be a big tip as to what to expect sound-wise but it’s not everything — they use their canny amalgation of the different Krautrock styles (motorik and kosmische in particular) to weave in prog, post-rock, and even some asteroid-dense doom. If you like the idea of Maserati with more Hawkwind space-soaring, these guys fulfill that purpose beautifully.

OTHER SHIT THAT COMES OUT TODAY

Amorphis – Live At Helsinki Ice Hall (NB) Listen
Hanging Garden – Skeleton Lake (Lifeforce) Listen
Herman Frank – Two For A Lie (AFM) Listen
Hippie Death Cult – Circle Of Days (Heavy Psych Sounds) Listen
Impure Wilhelmina – Antidote (SOM) Listen
Jess & The Ancient Ones – Vertigo (Svart) Listen
King Witch – Worship The Riffs EP (Listenable) Listen
Silver Talon – Decadence and Decay (M-Theory) Listen
Tooth And Claw – Dream Of Ascension (Good Fight) Listen
Various Artists – Metal Massacre XV (Metal Blade) Listen
Vexed – Culling Culture (Napalm) Listen
Wytch – Exordium (Ripple) Listen